lunedì 22 ottobre 2012

Rim Banna (born December 8, 1966) is a Palestinian singer, composer and arranger, well-known for her modern interpretations of traditional folk songs. Banna was born in Nazareth, where she graduated from Nazareth Baptist School in 1984. She currently lives in Nazareth with her husband, the artist Leonid Alexeienko, and their three children. Banna first achieved popularity among Palestinians in the Palestinian territory which was occupied in 1948 in the early 1990s, after recording a number of Palestinian children`s songs on the verge of being forgotten. Many such songs and rhymes sung by Palestinian families again today, are said to be thanks to Rim Banna`s work in preserving them via her recordings. For Banna - whose music is composed and arranged collaboratively with her husband - music is an important tool for cultural self-assertion: "A part of our work consists of collecting traditional Palestinian texts without melodies. So that the texts do not get lost, we try to compose melodies for them that are modern, yet inspired by traditional Palestinian music." As such, Banna does not merely mimic the traditional techniques for representation of the pieces she interprets. In her view, "Oriental singing techniques are mostly ornamental … But my voice is more two-dimensional, thicker. I try to write songs that fit my voice. I want to create something new in every respect. And that includes bringing people elsewhere closer to the music and soul of the Palestinians." Banna`s popularity in Europe began after Norwegian singer Kari Bremnes, invited her to Oslo after meeting her during a visit to Nazareth. Banna accepted the invitation, and the two artists were subsequently enlisted with others by Norwegian music producer Erik Hillestad to record the 2003 CD Lullabies from the Axis of Evil. Dubbed "a musical antiwar message to U.S. President Bush from female singers in Palestine, Iraq, Iran, and Norway,", the album brings these women together with others from North Korea, Syria, Cuba, and Afghanistan - to sing traditional lullabies from their lands in duet form with English-language performers whose translation allows the songs to reach a Western audience. Banna`s latest album, The Mirrors of My Soul, is a stylistic departure from her previous body of work. Produced in cooperation with a European quintet, it features "Western pop stylings" fused with Middle Eastern modal and vocal structures, and Arabic lyrics. Though the style of this album differs from previous recordings, the subject matter has basically remained constant. The album includes "songs of despair and hope" about the lives of "a struggling people, and even a song about late president Arafat in a way that is both thoughtful and subtle".

domenica 21 ottobre 2012

Rola Youssef Saad, a 34 yearold famous Labanese singer was born in Tannourine, Lebanon in 1978, to a Christian Maronite family and became an orphan as a child. . Her father died when she was just 5 months old. She had at the time two elder sister Zeina and Marie-Rose and a brother Georges. Her mother remarried when Rola was just 2 years old, and the children had to live with the grandmother and her uncle. Growing up Rola Saad said she always felt unlucky.

She entered show business first as a model, appearing in fashion ads, most notably ads for "Habibi" and "Dallou'a" perfumes, as well as landing roles in 2 music videos by Saber Rebai ("Etzakkarak" and "Hayyarouni") and minor roles on television. Her chance to fame came when her vocal abilities were recognized. Her musical beginnings were with Alam al Phan record label. She also opened a fashion company "Giorgo" with her elder sister. Her biggest hit was a cover of the Sabah classic "Yana Yana", with Sabah making a cameo in the video. The song became a huge success in 2006, topping sales charts . The music video was in heavy rotation on music channels throughout the Arab world.

Rola also is talented in acting, when she made a movie (room 707), and in 2011 she participated in a series (Sayeen Dayeen), in ramadan 2012 she acted on a famous Egyptian series by the name (Bahr W Atshana)

giovedì 18 ottobre 2012

Moneim Adwan was born in 1970 at Rafah in the part of Gaza. He start to sing when he was child some populars and religious songs.At 17 years old, he was interesting to play 'Ûd and few years later, he left his country to go to Tripoli (Lybia) where he got a master of Musicology at the University of Arts, with the teachers Fateh el-Ramiz (songs) and Abdallah Sebaï ('Ûd).After a turn in Egypt, Tunisia, Jordania and Irak, he worked during 6 years for differents events of the palestinian gouvernment, Ministery of Education, theater, cinema. He composed a opening music for Bethleem in January 2000. Since 1999, he recorded 3 cds in France : Chicha (meeting with the musician Michel Montanaro and the music of Provence), Nawah (meeting with the singer Françoise Atlan and sefarads songs, Buda Musique), Motayem "ecstatic with love" (meeting with the group Pêcheurs de Perles, music from Irak).In june 2004, he sung for the Fès Festival of world sacred music in Marocco..The songs of Moneim Adwan are his own compositions with all the musical heritage of his culture (traditional palestinian songs and classical arabic music). The text of this musician speak about the history of his country, the feeling and the sawl of palestinian people, the love.His strong and warmer voice who continue to sing is the most beautiful bird to carry the message of peace and hope even the war and the destruction.Moneim would like to transmit the palestinian sawl and philopsophy as much by the traditional repertory Taha than his own compositions Darwish. His last meeting with the sefarad singer Françoise Atlan (Nawah) and the group with irakians influences Pêcheurs de Perles (Motayem) give to him rich exchanges for resonance, tones and meaning.(Source : http://folkmusicsmb.blogspot.it)

The songs of Moneim Adwan are creations inspired by the Palestinian traditional musical patrimony and by the Arabic classic repertoire. His texts deal with his country's history, the Palestinian daily life, love. His compositions revive the tradition to keep it alive and make it achieve a sometimes difficult evolution, in a country where oppression and fear have now replaced reconstruction and hope.Pêcheurs de perles ("Pearl Fishermen" in French) is a band made of four European musicians led by an Iraki composer, ud player and singer, Mohamed Alhuma, who created the band. Together, they play Sufi music, recalling the days when musicians used to be bound to help pearl divers in the Persian Gulf by giving rhythm to their job.

domenica 14 ottobre 2012

Abu Arab Ibrahim Mohammed Saleh, a poet and singer Great Palestinian Revolution. Born in the village of Abu Arab tree spend Tiberias in Palestine in 1931, and moved from Lebanon to Syria, Tunisia, and camps in the diaspora in the world. And his son died during Israeli raids in the war. And saw the "Abu Arab" in his childhood the major breakthrough of the Palestinian revolution in 1936 against British occupation and Zionist settlement, which he has devoted all his poems, where his grandfather had used to pay tribute to the revolution and to encourage the Mujahideen, and to incite the people against the British occupiers.The foundations of his band, the first in Jordan in 1980 and was named team of the Palestine People's Heritage, and was composed of 14 artists. After the death of the artist Naji Al-Ali, one of the relatives were Abuarb change the name of the band to band Naji Al-Ali.‬

He said of himself: "I am a poet and Matarbha Palestinian refugee camps," and vowed to make fun of his hair and his voice to motivate the Palestinian people to continue the struggle against the occupier, and it was as well .. and continued

Julia Boutros (Arabic: جوليا بطرس‎; born April 1, 1968 ) is a Lebanese Palestinian singer that rose to stardom in the 1980s with a series of Palestinian nationalistic songs like "Ghabet Shams El Haq" and "Wen el malaieen". She is also the sister of Lebanese-Palestinian songwriter Ziad Boutros.Julia was born in Beirut, Lebanon on April 1, 1968 into Maronite Christian family to a Lebanese father and Palestinian Armenian mother. She was educated at the Rosary Sisters Schools where she sang in the school choir. Growing up, she and her brother were heavily influenced by Ziad Rahbani's works. When she was 12 years old she recorded her first song, entitled "A Maman" at Elias Al Rahbani studios. This was introduced to her by her music teacher Fouad Fadel. She also recorded two songs, "C'est la Vie" & "Viens dans Ma Vie" On October 11, 2006, Julia announced a new single called "Ahibaii" (My loved ones). The lyrics are based on a letter sent by Hizbollah secretary general Hassan Nasrallah to the fighters in South Lebanon during the 2006 Summer War between Lebanon and Israel.The poet Ghassan Matar adapted the original text. The music is composed by Ziad, brother of Julia and arranged by Michel Fadel. The profits from the song's sale went to help the families of Hizbollah fighters and to all Lebanese who died during the Israel-Lebanon conflict. Sales eventually garnered three million dollars for the families of the Lebanese civilians, soldiers, security forces, and Hezbollah militants who have been killed in the Israel-Lebanon conflict. The sum was triple the original aim, which was only one million dollars. The families of Lebanese soldiers killed during operation Naher el-Bared also received a portion of the money.